Firms play genial host to employees returning to offices

They dole out special allowances and open distributed office space 

Corporate India is bending over backwards to make the transition from work-from-home to back-in-office smooth.  From free stays in a star hotel (for those returning from their hometowns) and helping them find a house on rent to opening small satellite offices so the returning employees can still park themselves in places of their choice, firms are being quite generous with their resources.  There are also companies – particularly in the IT sector – that are still firming up return-to-office plans. 

Shantanu Pandey, who is on the rolls of Hirect, a hiring platform, had to relocate to Bengaluru from Delhi as the company started welcoming employees back to office. The HR team took care of his flight fare, rental-house brokerage charges, and baggage allowances. 

“On paper, our office extends a two-week, all-expenses-paid stay in a hotel. It, however, is not rigid about the duration, a factor that helped me take my time to get the ideal house on rent, one that enables me to walk to work,” says Mr. Pandey, revealing that his company let him stay at the hotel for three weeks. 

Quantiphi, an AI-first digital engineering company with offices in Mumbai and Bengaluru, announced in a communication that employees opting for the hybrid work model are eligible for a hybrid-work allowance and an enhanced relocation bonus. Such associates would also get additional flexibility to work from anywhere across the globe for one month. 

TerraPay, a global digital payments infrastructure company, expects a vast number of its employees to start returning to the cubicle from the first week of May. Associates out of Bangalore can stay at the JW Marriott Hotel or the Leela Palace for seven days on reaching the metro. They also receive a one-way flight ticket. The HR team has cherry-picked some real-estate brokers and a list of areas where they could look for a house. “In some cases, we are making exceptions, letting the employee work from home for some more months,” said Vinay Trivedi, Global Head - HR and Administration at TerraPay.   A shuttle service to ferry the staff to work has been organised. 

The company is also exploring the option of distributed offices, and they are likely to settle on a location in South Bengaluru. “Our main office in North Bengaluru is a 300-seater. However, given the challenge of commuting during the rush hour, we will be opening another space,” he added. 

Likewise, Meesho has signed a deal with WeWork to provide its employees access to co-working spaces. In recent weeks, NoBroker has seen a surge in corporates seeking tie-ups with them. As part of the deal, NoBroker engages a relationship manager who works closely with the employee (of any of these companies) to understand their requirements even before they move to the city and shortlist houses for them. Marathahalli, Belandur, Sarjapur, and Outer Ring Road are reportedly among sought-after areas.